


Rain on the Rooftops

by ODeorainFan2150



Series: The Townhouse [2]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Background details, Exposition, F/F, Fluff, Gen, Melancholy, Moira's Pets, Moira's family - Freeform, Some mention of deaths, most of the characters are just mentions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-13
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2019-06-09 16:12:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15271278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ODeorainFan2150/pseuds/ODeorainFan2150
Summary: This downtime gave her too long with her thoughts and inevitably put her in a melancholy mood. She began to look around the room she was in, desperate for something to spark her brain into gear again.The walls of the rest of her townhouse showed all of her interests but the collection of items here, on her desk, really showed what mattered to her most in the world.----A rainy day gives Moira time to think back on everything.





	Rain on the Rooftops

Rain in Dublin is a common occurrence all year round but in the autumn it brings a certain quality. A wistfulness that reminds you of the times gone by, ready to warm your heart before the chill of winter comes.

Moira sat in her study, up in the rafters and occupying the width of the house. She could hear the steady drumming of the rain on the rooftop, a soothing sound that did nothing to motivate her to work. Paperwork was laid out on her desk ready for one final look over before sending back to the lab in Oasis to sign off on for fabrication. This stage of her work always dragged on, hours in the lab slowed slightly by the bureaucracy a city full of scientists produced. The downtime gave her too long with her thoughts and inevitably put her in a melancholy mood. She began to look around the room she was in, desperate for something to spark her brain into gear again.

The walls of the rest of her townhouse showed all of her interests but the collection of items here, on her desk, really showed what mattered to her most in the world. Her Blackwatch beret, immaculate even after all this time, rested haphazardly over a faded photo with the caption “Overwatch Social”. This was taken long before the accusations and news stories forced her into Blackwatch and then out of Overwatch entirely. Some part of her was always saying to throw these reminders away, about how they had betrayed her and ruined her work. But the other side reminded her of the good times that had been had there. Pioneering new techniques with Angela and Winston, combat training with Gabe, Jessie and Genji, working as an organisation to push science forward in practical ways. Her eyes were quick to find herself among the sea of faces, standing just behind Angela. The blonde’s head was slightly tilted, pressing Moira’s long-fingered hand into place on her shoulder.

Beside it was a picture of Moira after receiving her doctorate. She was so young back then but was easily recognisable, her style barely changing throughout the years. The grin though, that was different. Moira wasn’t sure she could move her face like that anymore. Her parents and siblings, so proud to be crowded around her. Da may not have understood what she did all day but he always showed an interest, asking questions and nodding along sagely before trying to relate it to his building work or his garden. Ma looked tiny next to Moira but had a wide smile, proud as punch that she had raised someone as smart and hardworking as Moira. She remembered Ma standing on the stairs before the ceremony, straightening out Moira’s tie and sliding on the tie pin in the shape of a helix. Da and her had gone so close together, obviously wanting to stay together in death as in life. 

Standing behind her in the photo was Colm, smartly dressed in his officer’s uniform, trying to look professional though he couldn’t help but smile for the camera. Memories of him buying round after round for the bar they ended up in, proudly proclaiming his sister was the smartest O’Deorain in the whole of Ireland always brought a warm glow to her when she remembered it. It was always tempered by the memory of how soon after Colm went on his last mission. He died doing what he loved but it was still much too soon. He would have been at home in Overwatch had he been around long enough.

Opposite him in the photo was Aiden and his wife Blair. They both beamed with joy, partially for Moira’s achievements but also getting ready to tell the whole family that Blair was expecting. Moira had admittedly been a little sour that they had to reveal this on her special day but that soon passed when the baby arrived. Out of all her family who was no longer with her, the accident that took Aiden and Blair had ripped her life apart the most. It had taken years to put the pieces back together, both for her and for Emily.

Next in the line of pictures was a photo of a girl with ginger hair standing on the castle battlements, overlooking a city laid out like a carpet below. This had been Emily’s first trip back to Scotland, to see where her mother had grown up. Standing on the ramparts, Moira remembered Emily sketching away, filling her notebook with rough approximations of the landmarks she could see. That holiday had been just before Emily went away to boarding school, one final few weeks of constant time together. Every holiday day she had taken at Overwatch had been trips back home to see Emily, catching the end of term events and important milestones. She had done parent-teacher conferences over video link from her office in Geneva, careful to hide the Overwatch symbol from view. She wanted to give Emily a normal life.

Next to it in a smaller frame was Emily’s graduation photo. That trip to Scotland had awakened a love for drawing cities in her, and after a degree in Architecture, she was now drawing new offices and homes for people to live in. Some of her firm’s designs had even ended up on her desk in Oasis, often in the shortlist when looking at upcoming construction projects or testbeds for new innovations. The frame also had space for another small picture and she was still trying to choose one. She wasn’t sure she wanted Tracer’s face beaming out at her while she worked but their visit over Christmas hadn’t been too bad after the initial shock. Even so, the one of Emily holding Oscar might be a better choice.

The last photo was one that probably should be hidden away. Moira knew it would cause questions to be asked and possibly ruin the delicate lives they had both constructed for themselves if it was seen. But glancing at it always made her happy. It was her and Angela, standing the lakeside in Geneva, her in a suit while Angela wore a practical white dress. It had been a quiet event, just the two of them and the officiant - a shame knowing how many people would have loved to be there and celebrate. Her hand reached for the ring hanging on a chain around her neck. It almost hurt how much she wanted to be able to be together all the time but neither of them would have been happy being forced away from their tasks and responsibilities. Maybe one day, but not yet.

There were other photos in the room - Colm perched on a white painted hover tank in the desert somewhere, Aiden and Blair on their wedding day, a very old photo of Da standing proudly by the house she’d grown up in just after he finished building it, Emily dressed in an Overwatch Commander costume for Halloween (it was the only thing Moira had ever shown Jack that caused him to smile), Angela asleep on the sofa next to Dougal, the Blackwatch team (including her) and Fio posing by the nose of a dropship. Each one brought back memories and feelings that she knew she couldn’t avoid. But her work, for Talon and Oasis, required a sense of detachment. Moreover, her quest, her holy grail was still out there and no amount of memories would hold her back from trying to achieve that prize.

The rain continued to rap its tune on the rooftop.

Finally seeing the time, Moira gathered her papers, rose from her chair and headed to the doorway. With a sigh, she closed the door and locked it, putting all those memories and feelings back in their box and become Dr O’Deorain, Minister for Genetics in Oasis and Talon Inner Council Member. Walking down the stairs to finish sending the files, she smoothed her tie out, touching the helix-shaped pin for just a moment before continuing on.

**Author's Note:**

> Another idea that creeps into your skull and just needs writing. A one-shot on what makes the Moira I write about tick.
> 
> Don't worry, we'll have more Moira interacting with people in future stories
> 
> EDIT: Minor edits on 29/09/18 to improve readability
> 
> If you like this work, I love hearing your comments - I'll always try and respond! Alternatively, drop me an email at odeorainfan2150@gmail.com
> 
> Follow me on twitter at https://twitter.com/deorainfan2150 for news on what I'm working on next.
> 
> If you want to throw me a tip, you can find my Ko-Fi at https://ko-fi.com/odeorainfan2150.


End file.
